That's a wrap.

The lakes have turned, the trees have yellowed, flocks of geese have begun their migration southbound and moose have started bellowing calls throughout the night.  Fall landed upon us at Big Hook about a week ago.  Frosty nights started freezing water lines around the 14th of September and snow squalls swept through the Opasquia Provincial Park on the 19th. Since then, a warm front has crept back into the area.  However, the locks are on the doors and the Opasquia Provincial Park is now a population of 0.  Dad and I departed the north country on the 23rd of September under cool but sunny conditions.  A two hour flight brought us back to Eagle Lake, where the plane will sit briefly before I take it back to Selkirk, MB for winter storage.

It is amazing how quickly the daylight disappears. In June fisherman can stay on the water till 11 pm without any trouble of navigating the waterways.  However, the sun is down and it is pitch black outside at 8 pm come September.  Not only did the daylight disappear as the summer progressed but so did the water.  2013 was probably the driest year we have ever experienced in our 27 years of operation.  We began the year with a late ice out and record high waters only to finish the fishing season with record low water levels.  Several forest fires sprinkled the countryside due to the lack of rain, but none blossomed into raging infernos.  Most fires just sat and smoldered for weeks on end burning minimal area.

The sunny skies aided weed beds this summer. The healthy weeds helped produce great numbers of trophy northern pike.  Biggest pike of the summer from all of the seven outposts was boated and released at Cocos Lake topping at 48".  Biggest walleye this summer was boated, photo'd, and released at South Lake measuring an impressive 32".  

Dad and I completed several year end projects in the past couple of weeks.  One of those projects included constructing a new shower addition for South lake.  Also, another 16' X 8' floating dock was constructed for use at Central Lake.  More projects will follow once the winter road starts running and we are able to haul the necessary materials.

Mom, Dad and I would like to extend our thanks to everyone who helped make our 2013 season great. We are so thankful for so many gracious guests and look forward to visiting with everyone in the years to come.  

I hope the fall treats everyone well, especially on the water.  It is now my time to angle for trophy musky. Let the fish of a thousand casts begin at one this evening.

-Nathan
www.bighookcamps.com

A Beginners Guide to Portaging a Shower

Here in the north country logistical issues arise daily.  Getting Item A to Point B isn't as simple as placing it in a car and driving down the road.  Since we lack cars and roads in the area, we must focus on solving our transportation issues with airplanes and boats.  Yesterdays issue was getting lumber for a new shower addition from Central Lake to our South Lake outpost. Problem: 4' x 8' sheets of plywood do not fit into our 185 Cessna and are difficult/dangerous to externally load.  My proposed solution: transport the plywood via 12+ miles of waterways and carry the lumber plus boat/motor over three portages.  After some debate (actually very little at all) we eventually decided we didn't want to charter an airplane for six sheets of plywood.  So, I give you a beginners guide to portaging a shower.


Step #1: Find a strong back.
You are going to lift, haul, push, pull and struggle 100's of pounds over various terrain and numerous portages. Tyrol and I are the young bucks here at Big Hook and gladly accepted the challenge.  Well...I kinda had to go since it was my idea.

Ty properly demonstrates proper plywood carrying technique.

Next came pulling the boat and carrying the motor/gas.

 Step #2: Bring a guard dog.  Who knows what you will run across when portaging?

Shadow carefully approves of the boat load

We didn't encounter much wildlife but did see signs of bear on one portage.  Shadow made sure the rabid squirrels stayed up in the trees.












Step #3: Enjoy the scenery.

One of three waterfalls we came across.

The Central/South Lake riverway is an incredibly scenic boat ride with multiple twists and turns, waterfalls, and stunning views.











Step #4: Take a break to catch a fish or two along the way. By far the most important in my book.

A man's gotta fish. 

Below is one of the many 30+" fish we boated after we had delivered the shower materials to South.

There you have it an easy beginners guide to portaging a shower.

A quick fishing report.

This week was warm, still and dry. Daily high temperatures ranged from 70 to 88 degrees.  The majority of the week was dominated with a high pressure system. The fish responded kindly to the weather stability.  No rain all week means the water levels did drop but just a fraction of an inch.  Lake levels at Cocos, Burnt and Central are probably the lowest in at least 15 years.

The magic number for walleye was 20.  20 feet was the depth where most fish were found all week long. Jigging rock piles/points and mid lake humps was by far the most effective technique for finding schools.   Last night pink jigs with a 3/8 oz black head was dominant at Central.

For pike the name of the game is Weeds.  Find a weed bed close to deep water and you'll find a big pike.  Guests have been pulling bucktails through thick weeds and having great results.  Last night I casually tossed a Hell Hound while mom jigged for walleye and was surprised to see pike holding on rocky points.  Most nights have been still and calm, which means top water has been a ball.

Good luck on the water everyone.
-Nathan
www.bighookcamps.com

The Low Pressure Has Left the Building

One of the biggest thrills about being in this business for 29 years is to meet so many great people and learn about their lives.  This year we have seen a significant increase in the numbers of young people coming up to fish at Big Hook.  AND THESE KIDS DO FISH!!   We enjoy hearing their daily fishing stories. The children that have fished here this year have been great and very mannerly.   I think the "Special Bonding" that is reinforced when fishing together with their families and friends really shows.  Catching the big one is only part of the trip.  Thank you for sharing your passion of fishing to the next generation. -Evie Hartle 

Weather

Finally, finally and finally a massive low pressure system hovering to the north of the Opasquia Provincial Park moved eastward this morning (8/9/2013).  This chilling low pressure crept its way in last Sunday night and camped out over NW Ontario all week.  The system brought plenty of clouds, rain, wind and chilly temperatures.  The majority of the week, average daily highs peaked around 50-55 degrees, highly unusual for the first week of August.  Water temperatures dove into the mid to low 60's depending which body of water you were on.

Most of NW Ontario was in great need of rain.  The majority of our lakes in the park are flirting with all time lowest levels; this last bout of rain should have provided our water levels a decent boost. Fortunately, the system has moved on and sunnier skies are forecasted for the week ahead.

Fishing

Despite the weather, fisherman have been getting out on the water and catching some nice fish.  The weather did disperse the large schools and caused the number to drop on some lakes, however numerous trophies have been boated and released this week.  So a long story short, last week numbers were down but the sizable fish were still feeding. 

Most walleye were holding in around 16' of water on most lakes.  SW and Lemonade were the anomalies where guests are still boating fish in 6-10'.   Jigs and Rattle Traps seemed to be the consensus effective lures for fisherman.  Flouro-orange will always be one of my favorite colors on dark days.  Bigger fish seemed to be isolated from the schools, holding in around 20-25' on gradual drop offs.  

When focusing on bigger walleye 25"+, the trick is bringing your patience, as these fish are generally roaming areas alone or in small schools.  When I locate a wind blown point holding lots of fish in the 16-20" range I'll slowly maneuver the boat into 5-10' of deeper water for the bigger females.   

Pike are beginning their fall feed right on schedule.  Numerous large fish have been boated and released with whitefish still hanging out of their mouths.  The fact fish are still feeding with full bellies tells me that they are looking to put on some wait before winter arrives.  Larger baits are now becoming more and more effective for boating that toothy trophy.  My favorite lures this time of year are Bull Dawgs, Bomber Mag Long A's and Depth Raiders outside of the weed beds.  Fishing in the slop you still need to stick with the old faithful Johnson Silver Minnows, Bucktails and assorted topwater baits. 

According to several camps, early mornings and late afternoons seem to be the hot hours of the day for fish in the weeds; both are low light conditions.  Days with high sun and calm I will often try 8-12' rock reefs, casting big deep diving baits. 

Good luck on the water everyone, 

-Nathan

www.bighookcamps.com

Staying cool

One of the top factors affecting a fishing trip is the almighty Mother Nature.  Here in the north country you can have sunshine and temperatures in the 70's one minute followed by 40's and rain the next.  As close as the Opasquia Provincial Park is to Hudson Bay (about 200 miles), weather can flip like a coin.  This summer has been no different and predicting the weather has been downright maddening.

25" wally (July25); notice the three layers
 of clothes

Overall, the 2013 summer has been cool and extremely dry; two uncommon elements together.  Generally, rain is associated when the temperatures dip. The past two weeks weather has brought winds from the north with days in the 60's and cool, almost frigid nights.  I cannot remember the last July where we encountered nights dipping into the 30's and 40's.  Water temperatures have dropped considerably; into the lower 60's.

Our days have been a mixture of sun and clouds with very little rain.  The lack of rain has most lakes sitting 2 to 3 feet below normal.  One positive from the low water is weed growth.  Cabbage beds this year are probably the healthiest I have witnessed in years.  The pike and perch are loving the dense weeds.

Fishing

Walleye- Time to start the descent for walleye.  The bigger fish are now being found in 20' of water, so get ready to get your jig on. 3/8" oz black headed with pink, orange, or pumpkinseed tails have been hot.  Pick that windy shoreline and start bouncing bottom in search of  schools.  Reefs associated with open water have been holding nice fish.  This time of year a portable depth finder is your best friend.

To contradict everything I just wrote, don't forget to try weed edges from time to time.  Walleye love coming out of the deep waters to chase bait fish throughout the foliage. Trolling some shallow diving crankbaits along the weed edge can yield some big fish.  Don't forget to splice on at least a 30# mono or fluorocarbon leader to thwart the toothy pike from biting off your $8 crankbait.

Pike-Most of your efforts for pike should focus around cabbage weeds.  Try to find 6-8' weed beds associated with open water.  Small bays with shallow water this time of year will yield smaller fish.  Two of my favorite baits remain the Johnson silver minnow and the orange bladed #8 colorado blade with black skirt bucktail.  Navigating these through the thickest of weeds will produce great results.

Now what should you do when you hook a monster in the dense cabbage?  First, set the hook, HARD! A good hook set will ensure your trophy remains on the line.  Second, get ready to PULL...but not too hard.  The dense cabbage is going to become your biggest opponent; getting your monster out is going to require some finesse as they dart, roll and wrap your line every which way.  A gentle tug to uproot or slice the weeds while the fish is docile is necessary.  Finally, no slack EVER! Never let that fish wrap you through the weeds to where your line goes slack; that my friends, is game over should it happen.  Obeying these rules should help you land, smile, photo and release your trophy.

Notable catches and hot spots from last week:

Burnt- The Ridge was electric holding lots of walleye and pike.
Central- 41" pike off of Beaver Hut bay. Nice walleye holding near airplane island.
Cocos- North on the Sagawithcewan towards east lake held many 38"+ pike.
Favourable-42" pike near the dock.  Lemonade was hot on the windy shorelines.
South-Loads of 23-25" walleye and a monster topping at 30".
SW- Hoards of 18" walleye caught near the Twin Towers.
West- The rock next to the dock is the best overlooked spot on the lake. Two 38" fish in thirty minutes boated and released there.

Good luck on the water everyone.
-Nathan
www.bighookcamps.com